“Archbishop Glenn Davies, in his Presidential address opening the 2016 Synod, or Parliament, of the Anglican Church, has spoken of Sydney’s urban sprawl and efforts to establish new churches on the fringe of the city…” – Read Russell Powell’s report at SydneyAnglicans.net.

“Alec was a pillar of the evangelical Anglican establishment in the second half of the twentieth century, and a terrific example of a Reformed evangelical Bible commentator.

As the ‘church militant here on earth’ becomes increasingly bereft of those in that great generation, we must pray fervently for the continuation of their legacy — especially for the production of more Bible-loving, theologically-rigorous resources which feed warm-hearted, Christ-exalting preaching, but also for more Anglicans with his love for the word and for Reformation truths.”

“Each weekday the entire college gathered for lunch. The food typically was English-bland, and 30 years after Victory in Europe Day, in war rationing quantities. The fellowship was wonderful, but the highlight (besides the tea) was Mr. Motyer’s closing prayer following a review of the college’s life.

The prayer before the meal was very brief. “For these and all thy mercies we give Thee thanks, O Lord, in our Saviour’s name, amen.” Motyer was devout but not sanctimonious. It was time to eat; no sense delaying the hungry.

The prayer following the meal was long, and worth the price of admission. He was no Prayer Book cripple. He prayed as he preached, with an Irishman’s passion and filled with Scripture. I never missed lunch, despite the food, because I didn’t want to miss the prayer.”

“A Pakistani court has granted bail to the lead suspect in the brutal 2014 killings of a young Christian couple, burned alive in a brick kiln where they worked as bonded labourers, itself illegal in Pakistan…”

“An extraordinary general meeting of the Evangelical Union (EU) has seen the organisation formally reject proposed changes to its constitution that would remove a mandatory faith-based declaration for new members.

In a secret ballot, members voted 71-1 opposing the proposed changes, well short of the two-thirds majority required for constitutional amendments.

A packed Holme Reading Room heard over an hour of speeches from members who supported the declaration, most claiming it is inextricably linked to the society’s identity. Not a single speaker spoke in favour of its removal…”

“A five-year tussle between the University of Sydney Union and the Evangelical Union has finally reached an impasse, with the university now unequivocally stating that the EU must remove the requirement for members to sign a faith-based declaration, and threatening them with deregistration from the clubs and societies program if they fail to comply by 31 March…“

The Board of the Australian College of Theology has announced (PDF) that Dr. Martin Sutherland, currently Academic Dean of Laidlaw College in Auckland, will be the new Dean and Chief Executive Officer of the ACT, from July 2016.

“The name of Jesus is not welcome in the Johnson Space Center newsletter, according to a complaint filed on behalf of a group of Christians who work for NASA. …

And NASA’s behavior is quite frankly baffling. On Christmas Eve, 1968 – the crew of Apollo 8 read the Creation story as they orbited the moon. Astronauts Jim Lovell, Frank Borman and Bill Anders took turns reading from the Book of Genesis.”